{"id":86497,"date":"2026-07-17T00:01:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T06:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=86497"},"modified":"2026-07-20T23:13:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T05:13:02","slug":"the-wild-thaiger-phoenix-arizona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=86497","title":{"rendered":"The Wild Thaiger – Phoenix, Arizona"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"
The Wild Thaiger in Central Phoenix<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Wild Thaiger, burning bright
\nIn the Phoenix desert night,
\nWhat immortal hand or eye
\nCould frame thy fiery beef Panang curry?<\/em><\/p>\n

I’m no William Blake, but my inaugural visit to Wild Thaiger in Phoenix, Arizona inspired me to wax poetic.\u00a0 It would be peurile of me to pen an unctuous description of Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver (Ola for short) that might have included the terms “cougar” or “tigress.”\u00a0 \u00a0Chef Ola is a serious, self-taught chef who learned the art of cooking from her family’s rich Thai culinary traditions and honed her skills hands-on in the restaurant industry.\u00a0 To view her as something other than that is to diminish her talents.\u00a0 She may be a vibrant, energetic and very attractive celebrity chef, but there’s so much more to her than that.<\/p>\n

The culinary world witnessed Chef Ola’s culinary talents as well as her vivaciousness during a 2014 visit by gliteratti Guy Fieri and the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” crew. His initial visit was featured in the season 22 episode “Globe Tasting” which originally aired in 2015. During this visit, he highlighted such signature dishes as pork and crab dumplings known as “Dragon Eggz” and the Mu Yang marinated pork skewers. Fieri later returned to the restaurant for a follow-up visit featured in an episode that aired in late 2025.\u00a0 The Triple D host is a massive fan of The Wild Thaiger, effusively praising its modern Thai cooking and boldly declaring it “the best Thai food place in all of Arizona<\/em>.”\u00a0 He praised Chef Ola’s bold flavors and described her food as a “globe tasting<\/em>” experience<\/p>\n

\"\"
Wild Thaiger Dining Room<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I am, by no means, a “Triple D sycophant” like so many who travel across the country specifically to dine at restaurants featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.\u00a0 These dedicated culinary tourists map out road trips, track down greasy spoons and attempt to recreate Fieri’s iconic cross-country dining experiences, usually ordering the dishes prepared for him on the show.\u00a0 Although I find the spike-coiffured Fieri very entertaining and funnier (by far) than any late night television show host, I don’t always agree with his assessments, especially when there are foods he won’t eat (liver and onions, eggs, etc.).<\/p>\n

More than most of the 1,600 restaurants Fieri has visited across the United States and internationally, I found his 2014 visit to Wild Thaiger captivating.\u00a0 Not only were the dishes prepared by Chef Ola unique and intriguing, she proved herself a match for Fieri.\u00a0 Their rapport and repartee was very engaging.\u00a0 Unlike some episodes, Fieri didn’t have to “carry” a chef whose on-air wit and charm don’t measure up to their culinary talents.\u00a0 Chef Ola may not have stolen the show, but she certainly deserved equal billing.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The Fabulous Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Live and in color, Chef Ola is every bit as engaging as she is on television.\u00a0 She’s energetic, vibrant and personable.\u00a0 She also knows how to take a compliment well…and my compliments came like a fuscillade of the most sincere flattery.\u00a0 We took a couple of “usies” (A selfie that features two people is commonly called an “usie” (short for “us”) or a “twofie”) where she had me cracking up. Chef Ola is a great restaurateur. Yes, but can she cook? Boy, can she cook! She’s known for creating modern, Thai-inspired cuisine with deep, authentic flavors. Her cooking often combines traditional Thai culinary techniques with personal, innovative twists.\u00a0 In a city with two of the best Thai restaurants in the country (Glai Baan<\/strong><\/a> and Lom Wong<\/strong><\/a> (which is helmed by a James Beard award-winning chef)) Chef Ola takes a backseat to no one!<\/p>\n

While critics tend to cite restaurants such as Glai Baan and Lom Wong as being\u00a0 “more authentic<\/em>,” “regional<\/em>,” or\u00a0 serving”street-style<\/em>” food, Wild Thaiger is frequently praised for its high-quality standards and “American-friendly<\/em>” (but still authentic) interpretation of classic dishes. One dissenting review suggested a more fitting name for the restaurant would be “Mild Thaiger.”\u00a0 How much do you want to bet that this line was penned by someone who couldn’t have eaten food prepared “Thai hot?”\u00a0 Chef Ola approaches “Thai hot<\/em>” food as an experience that must balance intense, fiery heat with deep, vibrant flavor. Rather than burning the palate purely for the sake of spiciness, her philosophy centers on honoring traditional Thai family recipes by extracting maximum aroma and flavor from fresh, authentic ingredients such as Thai chilies, lemongrass, and galangal.\u00a0 That’s precisely what true aficionados of Thai cuisine want.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Dragon Eggz<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Peruse the menu and you will find “Thai hot” (think napalm laced with hellfire) cuisine. The most piquant dish at Wild Thaiger is appropriately named the “Fire Wok-ker<\/strong>.” <\/em>This flaming hot Thai fried rice is levels above traditional dishes and is prepared with fiery hot basil. It comes loaded with string beans, mushrooms, carrots, peppers, and onions. You may want a gallon of milk on hand to mollify the heat.\u00a0 The menu is categorized into sensical sections: Starters, Salads, Hot Pots, Curries, Rice & Noodles, Pad Thai, Specialties, Seafood, On The Side and Desserts.\u00a0 You can order your dishes ranging from mild to Thai hot.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most popular starter on the menu is the curiously named Dragon Eggz<\/strong><\/em>, essentially shrimp, pork and crab (the real stuff) dumplings with oyster sauce, sugar and eggs.\u00a0 You can ask for your dragon eggz served steamed or fried.\u00a0 If you order the latter,\u00a0 Chef Ola first steams the dumplings for fifteen minutes then drops them in the frying pan.\u00a0 She then pours the “dragon eggz sauce” on top and crowns each of the six dumplings with a jalape\u00f1o ring.\u00a0 The dumplings aren’t completely sealed.\u00a0 There’s just too much filling to completely wrap them.\u00a0 Though you might be tempted to devour them in one bite, make the time to savor the delicate and balanced flavors.\u00a0 Immerse them in the slightly piquant and tangy dragon eggz sauce for a flavor boost.\u00a0 They go down even better with the jalape\u00f1o.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Khao Soi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thailand has developed over 100 different varieties of curry, heavily influenced by regional geography and history. It’s not uncommon in Thai restaurants across the fruited plain to see six or seven curry dishes on a menu. Wild Thaiger lists five, but they’re not the usual curries most restaurants serve. Because I couldn’t make up my mind which to have, I asked my delightful server who recommended the Khao Soi<\/strong><\/em>, a mild, coconut-based curry served over soft egg noodles and topped with crispy egg noodles. It is then perfected by optional additions of chicken, lemon slices, chili and cilantro.\u00a0 The rich, creamy, and mildly spicy coconut curry broth (which includes chili, ginger and tumeric) is the star of the show as curry tends to be for me.\u00a0 This curry would make an excellent aftershave (so I could smell it all day long).\u00a0 An entire chicken leg practically is so tender it practically falls apart with a slight press of your fork.\u00a0 Immerse the crispy egg noodles into the broth and they don’t quite soften, but provide a nice textural contrast to the soft egg noodles.\u00a0 This is a magnificent dish!<\/p>\n

In the two Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives episodes in which Wild Thaiger was featured, the world learned that Chef Osa’s take on modern Thai cuisine is a delicious departure from the same dishes featured in most Thai restaurants.\u00a0 What we didn’t learn is that the chef is not only an accomplished chef, but a fantastic baker.\u00a0 Her baking talents are showcased in the “cake of the day.”\u00a0 Though such thoroughly wonderful Thai desserts as mangos with sticky rice, fried banana and coconut ice cream are on the menu, do yourself a favor and inquire about the cake of the day.\u00a0 During my inaugural visit, that cake was a towering, three-layer\u00a0 Banana-Peanut Butter-Chocolate Cake<\/strong><\/em>.\u00a0 It’s flavor upon flavor upon flavor, a melange of flavors that go very well together.\u00a0 It’s moist and delicious, the type of cake you might not want to share no matter how much you love your dining companion.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Banana-Peanut Butter-Chocolate Cake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Wild Thaiger\u00a0 is a Phoenix hotspot that\u2019s turning tradition on its head with bold flavors, creative twists and a chef with as much charisma and charm as her food has flavors.<\/p>\n

The Wild Thaiger<\/strong>
\n2631 North Central Avenue
\nPhoenix, Arizona<\/strong>
\n602-241-8995
\nWebsite<\/strong><\/a> | Facebook Page<\/strong><\/a>
\nLATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 17 July 2026
\n# OF VISITS<\/strong>: 1
\nRATING<\/strong>: N\/R
\nCOST<\/strong>: $$ – $$$
\nBEST BET<\/strong>: Banana-Peanut Butter-Chocolate Cake, Kha Soi, Dragon Eggs
\nREVIEW #1532<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wild Thaiger, burning bright In the Phoenix desert night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fiery beef Panang curry? I’m no William Blake, but my inaugural visit to Wild Thaiger in Phoenix, Arizona inspired me to wax poetic.\u00a0 It would be peurile of me to pen an unctuous description of Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver (Ola for short) that might have included the terms “cougar” or “tigress.”\u00a0 \u00a0Chef Ola is a serious, self-taught chef who learned the art of cooking from her family’s rich Thai culinary traditions and honed her skills hands-on in the restaurant industry.\u00a0 To view her as something other than that is to diminish her talents.\u00a0 She may be a vibrant, energetic and very attractive celebrity chef, but there’s so much more to her than that. The culinary world witnessed Chef Ola’s culinary talents as well as her vivaciousness during a 2014 visit by gliteratti Guy Fieri and the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” crew. His initial visit was featured in the season 22 episode “Globe Tasting” which originally aired in 2015. During this visit, he highlighted such signature dishes as pork and crab dumplings known as “Dragon Eggz” and the Mu Yang marinated pork skewers.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":86508,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,277,1762,91,553],"tags":[5834,5843,5846,1160,5845,1678,749,5844],"class_list":["post-86497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arizona","category-asian","category-diners-drive-ins-and-dives","category-thai","category-across-america","tag-5834","tag-banana-peanut-butter-chocolate-cake","tag-chef-owner-olashawn-hasadinratana-weaver","tag-diners-drive-ins-dives","tag-dragon-eggs","tag-food-network","tag-guy-fieri","tag-kha-soi"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Wild Thaiger - Phoenix, Arizona - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=86497\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Wild Thaiger - Phoenix, Arizona - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Wild Thaiger, burning bright In the Phoenix desert night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fiery beef Panang curry? I’m no William Blake, but my inaugural visit to Wild Thaiger in Phoenix, Arizona inspired me to wax poetic.\u00a0 It would be peurile of me to pen an unctuous description of Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver (Ola for short) that might have included the terms “cougar” or “tigress.”\u00a0 \u00a0Chef Ola is a serious, self-taught chef who learned the art of cooking from her family’s rich Thai culinary traditions and honed her skills hands-on in the restaurant industry.\u00a0 To view her as something other than that is to diminish her talents.\u00a0 She may be a vibrant, energetic and very attractive celebrity chef, but there’s so much more to her than that. The culinary world witnessed Chef Ola’s culinary talents as well as her vivaciousness during a 2014 visit by gliteratti Guy Fieri and the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” crew. His initial visit was featured in the season 22 episode “Globe Tasting” which originally aired in 2015. 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I’m no William Blake, but my inaugural visit to Wild Thaiger in Phoenix, Arizona inspired me to wax poetic.\u00a0 It would be peurile of me to pen an unctuous description of Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver (Ola for short) that might have included the terms “cougar” or “tigress.”\u00a0 \u00a0Chef Ola is a serious, self-taught chef who learned the art of cooking from her family’s rich Thai culinary traditions and honed her skills hands-on in the restaurant industry.\u00a0 To view her as something other than that is to diminish her talents.\u00a0 She may be a vibrant, energetic and very attractive celebrity chef, but there’s so much more to her than that. The culinary world witnessed Chef Ola’s culinary talents as well as her vivaciousness during a 2014 visit by gliteratti Guy Fieri and the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” crew. His initial visit was featured in the season 22 episode “Globe Tasting” which originally aired in 2015. 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